Surf Forecasts:
The Bar surf forecast from 3 Aug 2026:
- Best quality surf: Friday 7 Aug, 4PM (local time) - 4.5ft (1.4m), 9s period, WNW swell with cross-offshore winds.
- Most powerful swell: Wednesday 5 Aug, 4PM (local time) - 13ft (4.0m), 9s period, WNW swell with 2,597 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Monday 3 Aug, 4AM (local time) - 2ft (0.6m), 7s period with NW swell.
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for The Bar this week:
The surf forecast for The Bar over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Monday (Aug 03) at 4AM. The primary swell is predicted to be 0.6m and 7s period with a secondary swell of 0.4m and 8s. The wind is predicted to be cross-offshore as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at The Bar in the next 16 days are 4.0m 9s and forecast to arrive on Wednesday (Aug 05) at 4PM. Winds are predicted to be cross-onshore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 0.5m 3s period and expected on Friday (Aug 07) at 10AM.
| Wave Type | Time (IST) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 4AM (Mon 3rd Aug) | 2ft (0.6m) 7s |
| Best Surf | 4PM (Fri 7th Aug) | 4.5ft (1.4m) 9s |
| Most Powerful | 4PM (Wed 5th Aug) | 13ft (4.0m) 9s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for The Bar over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s get real about The Bar. Looking at the whole 16-day window, it’s a tough run. We’ve got a decent little window coming up, but there’s a lot of flatness and onshore junk to wade through first.
The water is sitting at 62°F, which is a touch warmer than usual for this time of year – nothing crazy, but it’s a nice little bonus for the early paddles.
The best bet by a mile is the morning of Saturday the 8th. We’ve got a clean 6 ft swell from the WNW, with some moderate energy behind it (402). The wind is a light cross-off from the SSW, which is a major positive. It’s a bit of a standout for the whole period. Honestly, the Friday afternoon before it, the 7th, is also looking pretty good with 5 ft from the WNW and clean cross-off winds from the SSW. That’s a solid little two-session window.
Before that, it’s rough. The first few days of August are tiny or messy. Nothing really worth chasing. Then Wednesday the 5th brings a massive spike in energy with 13 ft on the afternoon, but it’s a full-on cross-onshore mess from the WNW with strong winds. The energy is huge (2597), but the quality is just not there. That’s more of a kite-surfing setup than a paddle session.
After the 8th, it drops off again into a long, quiet stretch. A few days of small, onshore junk. The energy just collapses. There’s a flicker of life on the morning of the 16th, with 7 ft from the W and clean cross-off winds from the S, and the energy is building (539). That’s another promising window, but it’s more than a week out, so take it with a grain of salt. The 17th gets a bit bigger at 8 ft, but the wind is crap and the direction is onshore – that’s expert-only territory, and even then, it’s questionable.
So, for the whole run, the absolute standout is the morning of Saturday the 8th. Get it while you can.
Rusty.
Short Range ForecastHeavy rain (total 31mm), heaviest during Tue afternoon. Warm (max 20°C on Mon afternoon, min 13°C on Sun night). Winds increasing (calm on Mon afternoon, strong winds from the WNW by Wed morning). | Days 5-7 Weather SummaryHeavy rain (total 21mm), heaviest during Fri afternoon. Very mild (max 16°C on Thu morning, min 12°C on Wed night). Winds decreasing (strong winds from the WNW on Wed afternoon, calm by Fri night). | |||||||||||||||||||
Sun 2 | Monday 3 | Tuesday 4 | Wednesday 5 | Thursday 6 | Friday 7 | Saturday 8 | ||||||||||||||
PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | |
Swell Height Map |  |  |  |  |  |  |  | |||||||||||||
Wave Height (m) Direction Period (s) | NW 8 | NW 8 | NNW 9 | NNW 9 | NNW 9 | NNW 9 | NNW 8 | NW 5 | WNW 8 | WNW 9 | NW 8 | WNW 7 | WNW 6 | WNW 8 | WNW 9 | WNW 9 | W 8 | WNW 8 | WNW 8 | WNW 8 |
Wave Graph  | ||||||||||||||||||||
 kJ | 90 | 45 | 26 | 27 | 27 | 26 | 37 | 108 | 1220 | 2597 | 581 | 149 | 58 | 144 | 213 | 318 | 324 | 402 | 270 | 151 |
Wind (km/h) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | cross-off | off | cross-off | cross-off | off | off | cross | on | cross-on | cross-on | on | cross-on | on | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-on | cross-off | on | on |
High Tide | 9:04PM3.46m | 9:25AM2.95m | 9:39PM3.34m | 10:04AM2.87m | 10:18PM3.18m | 10:49AM2.78m | 11:06PM2.99m | 11:45AM2.68m | 00:08AM2.79m | 12:58PM2.62m | 1:30AM2.66m | 2:23PM2.69m | 3:01AM2.68m | |||||||
Low Tide | 3:15AM0.36m | 3:13PM0.47m | 3:50AM0.44m | 3:52PM0.61m | 4:31AM0.57m | 4:39PM0.79m | 5:21AM0.74m | 5:39PM0.97m | 6:27AM0.91m | 7:03PM1.08m | 7:52AM0.98m | 8:42PM1.02m | ||||||||
 |  |  | |  |  |  | | | |  |  | | | | | | |  |  | |
 | — | — | 5:48 | — | — | 5:50 | — | — | 5:52 | — | — | 5:54 | — | — | 5:56 | — | — | 5:56 | — | — |
 | — | 9:32 | — | — | 9:30 | — | — | 9:29 | — | — | 9:27 | — | — | 9:24 | — | — | 9:22 | — | — | 9:21 |
mm | 3 | 3 | — | — | 9 | 2 | 8 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 1 | — | 3 | 2 | 4 | 7 | 1 | — | — | — |
Temp °C | 14 | 14 | 16 | 20 | 15 | 19 | 19 | 16 | 13 | 14 | 14 | 16 | 16 | 14 | 14 | 16 | 14 | 15 | 15 | 14 |
Feels °C | 14 | 13 | 14 | 19 | 13 | 20 | 20 | 15 | 5 | 7 | 8 | 14 | 12 | 12 | 11 | 15 | 12 | 14 | 13 | 12 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | NW 8 | NW 8 | NNW 9 | NNW 9 | NNW 9 | NNW 9 | NNW 8 | — | — | — | — | N 8 | WNW 6 | WNW 8 | WNW 9 | N 7 | — | WNW 8 | WNW 8 | WNW 8 |
| kJ | 90 | 45 | 26 | 27 | 27 | 26 | 37 | — | — | — | — | 41 | 58 | 144 | 213 | 1 | — | 402 | 270 | 151 |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | N 9 | NNW 9 | NW 7 | NW 7 | NW 6 | NW 6 | NW 7 | — | — | — | — | W 10 | N 7 | N 6 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| kJ | 15 | 26 | 17 | 11 | 6 | 1 | 2 | — | — | — | — | 17 | 15 | 3 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | W 10 | WSW 10 | SW 11 | W 9 | W 9 | W 9 | W 11 | — | — | — | — | — | W 10 | W 9 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| kJ | 8 | 9 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | 17 | 6 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | — | E 3 | ENE 3 | ESE 2 | SE 3 | — | NW 5 | WNW 8 | WNW 9 | NW 8 | WNW 7 | — | — | SSW 3 | WNW 9 | W 8 | — | — | — |
| kJ | — | — | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | — | 108 | 1220 | 2597 | 581 | 149 | — | — | 6 | 318 | 324 | — | — | — |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | ||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 0 | 0 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 22 | 40 | 112 | 127 | 275 | 237 | 22 | 422 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 22 | 0 | 266 | 32 |
Best forecast wave conditions in Sligo | ||||||||||||||||||||
Best forecast wave conditions in Ireland | ||||||||||||||||||||
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The surf report / weather widget below is available to embed on third party websites free of charge and provides a summary of our The Bar surf forecast. Simply grab the html code snippet that we provide and paste it into your own site. You can choose your preferred language and metric/imperial units for the surf forecast feed to suit users of your site. Click here to get the code.
Information about the The Bar Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for The Bar provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at The Bar can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our The Bar surf forecast is unique since it includes wave energy (power) that defines the real feel of the surf rather than just the height or the period. If you surf the same spot (The Bar) regularly then make a mental note of the wave energy from the surf forecast table each time you go. Very soon you may start to choose your surf days based on the wave energy alone combined with our forecast of favourable offshore wind conditions. Our star ratings will help here and of course you will also find the usual wave height and period predictions on our surf forecasts as well as a full break down of the swell components under our advanced users option (to reveal that, click the little Einstein character under the tide times).
Further information to help with frequently asked questions about our surf forecast for The Bar may be found under the help tab on the top menu and also by moving your mouse over the question marks on the surf forecast table itself. Please always bear in mind that the forecast is for near-shore open water and local factors at each surf break influence the actual breaking wave height, such as the beach / reef profile, water depths offshore and shelter.
Are you planning a holiday in Sligo? If you are looking for accommodation near The Bar, camping, hotels and holiday cottages in Sligo, consider staying in Sligo which is 10 km (6 miles) away. Other places in and around Sligo where you can find information about places to rent, and car hire include Ballina which is 38 km (24 miles) away, Killybegs, Claremorris and Enniskillen.
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